Monday, December 23, 2013

Day 3 - EPCOT

Our second and final day at EPCOT for this trip was to begin with a Fast Pass for Soarin'. Rod and I decided to sleep in a little, and met the kids at Akershus in Norway for a breakfast with the princesses. This is truly a good breakfast, served mostly family style. Bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, and a breakfast potato dish are served at the table. On the buffet there is fresh fruit, sliced meats, cheeses, yogurt, cinnamon rolls, biscuits, and chocolate croissants. Our server advised us to try the "brown" cheese. We did, and it was delicious - yes it was a brown goat cheese. We had a photo take with Belle, and were visited at the table by Cinderella, Aurora, Snow White and Ariel.

The kids waited in a very long line to meet Santa and Mrs. Clause, while Rod and I shopped. The kids met with some of the other characters, and in the afternoon returned to do Test Track. I had wanted to visit some of the other lands in EPCOT and see some of the shows and storytellers, but the park was so packed that I had trouble navigating the crowds. I had heard that there was a Koi Pond in Japan - never found it. In frustration, I gave up and returned to the front of the park to watch a Christmas concert by a gospel group. It was very enjoyable, and it seemed to me that the "kind, and happy people" had gathered here. Maybe they were also avoiding the pushy crowds in World Showcase. We went to the aquarium and saw Turtle Talk with Crush (I love that cool dude). I bid farewell to EPCOT, my favorite park.

We had a late dinner at Kona, where they have the best steaks. It is one of our favorite restaurants, and we eat here every visit. We had planned a cruise to view Wishes, the fireworks show at the Magic Kingdom. Our boat was to leave at 8:30 to view Wishes at 9:00. But Disney decided to keep the Magic Kingdom open later, so instead we left at 9:00 to view Wishes at 10:00. If you are a Disney visitor and have never done a cruise, I heartily encourage you to try one. Although they are a relaxing way to see the fireworks without crowds, they are also very informative. Our captain took us on a tour of the lake, and showed us a secret island where Disney had originally planned an "animal kingdom". He showed us the location of Disney's first water park, now defunct.

And we got to see the Electric Boat Parade. The only downside of this cruise was the weather. We FROZE!!! It was so cold and windy. Non-alcoholic beverages and snacks are provided with the cost of the cruise, but we could certainly have used some hot cocoa.

My notes on today - the crowds were unbelievable to say that we had chosen a week that was supposedly "less crowded". There was more pushing, fewer kind words, and the day was certainly more stressful for me. One good thing is that there is now a Starbucks in EPCOT, and it was like an oasis in the dessert.

2 comments:

If I can find my photos of the koi pond in Japan, I'll show them to you. The cruise sounds nice (except for the cold weather). I can recall the old River Country water park (the first one at WDW). We did spend a day or two there some years back. I understand it is all overgrown now and I have heard some mention of "bacteria" there being the reason it was closed and never "re-purposed" into anything else...but I don't know if that's true or a rumor. Sorry you didn't get to see the various storytellers. I know that was something you hoped to do this trip. :(